Pubdate: Fri, 12 Jun 2015
Source: Winnipeg Free Press (CN MB)
Copyright: 2015 Winnipeg Free Press
Contact: http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/opinion/send_a_letter
Website: http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/502
Authors: Geordon Omand and Terry Pedwell
Page A16
Referenced: Supreme Court Judgment (R. v. Smith): 
http://mapinc.org/url/d2dzMbjW

HIGH COURT RULES NO CRIME TO EAT POT

Says Law Infringed on Rights Under Canadian Charter

THE Supreme Court of Canada has ruled unanimously medical marijuana 
can be legally consumed in products such as cookies, brownies and 
teas, a decision that "outraged" the federal government but elated 
the baker at the centre of the case.

Federal regulations had previously stipulated authorized users of 
physician-prescribed cannabis could only consume dried marijuana.

But the high court said in a 7-0 decision Thursday limiting medical 
consumption to dried pot infringes on liberty protections under the 
Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

"Across the country, there will be a lot more smiles and a lot less 
pain," said Owen Smith, a former baker for the Victoria Cannabis 
Buyers Club, whose 2009 arrest spurred the legal challenge.

Smith was charged after police found hundreds of pot cookies and 
cannabis-infused olive and grape-seed oils in his Victoria apartment. 
He was acquitted at trial and won an appeal.

The decision was yet another rebuke of the Harper government's 
tough-on-crime agenda.

Not only was it unanimous, but the court made a point of attributing 
the written decision to the entire court - something the justices do 
when they want to underline a finding.

"The prohibition of non-dried forms of medical marijuana limits 
liberty and security of the person in a manner that is arbitrary and 
hence is not in accord with the principles of fundamental justice," 
said the written judgment.

The initial trial judge in Smith's case gave the federal government a 
year to change the laws around cannabis extracts, but the top court 
said its ruling takes effect immediately.

Cheryl Rose, whose daughter, Hayley, takes cannabis for a severe form 
of epilepsy, was overjoyed by the decision and said her 22-year-old's 
seizures have dropped dramatically.

Under the old law, Hayley was ingesting 15 capsules of dried cannabis 
daily. Now, she will only have to swallow one concentrated capsule 
made with oil. "Without having extracts available for her, I don't 
think we'd be able to keep it up. It's way too much for a person to 
consume," she said. "She's finally going to fully have her life back."

Alex Repetski, of Thornhill, Ont., could have been charged with 
possession and trafficking for converting dried bud into oil for his 
three-year-old daughter, Gwenevere, whose debilitating epilepsy has 
left her developmentally delayed.

Since starting on the low-THC marijuana, Gwenevere has seen an 
incredible recovery, Repetski said. The decision means he no longer 
fears prosecution.

But implications of the ruling for authorized producers are 
uncertain, said Eric Paul, who heads Ontario-based licensed marijuana 
provider CannTrust Inc.

"Does this mean the legislation... gives us the right to provide oral 
products or some other form?" asked Paul. "The answer is it's not 
clear at the moment."

Limiting medical marijuana use to dried pot "limits life, liberty and 
security of the person" in two ways, the court said. First, the 
prohibition on possession of cannabis in forms other than dried pot 
places a person at risk of imprisonment; they wouldn't face the same 
threat if they possessed dried marijuana buds.

It also exposes people with a legitimate need for marijuana to other 
potential medical ailments, it stated. "It subjects the person to the 
risk of cancer and bronchial infections associated with smoking dry 
marijuana and precludes the possibility of choosing a more effective 
treatment."

Health Minister Rona Ambrose said she was "outraged" by the marijuana decision.

"The big issue here is the message about normalization," she said. 
"The message that judges, not medical experts, judges have decided 
something is a medicine."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom